Western Downs Regional Council was recognised for engineering excellence and innovation in water and wastewater project management. From left: Council’s Utilities Capital Works Program Manager Matthew Sullivan, Councillor George Moore, and Infrastructure Services General Manager Graham Cook.

Western Downs Regional Council’s Utilities and Works sections have been awarded for their excellence in water and wastewater project innovation and road safety community awareness across our region at last week’s 2015 Institute of Public Works Engineering Australasia (IPWEA) Excellence Awards in Mackay.

Council was celebrated for their engineering excellence in the following categories:

Winner for ‘Water, Waste Water, Sewerage and Drought Management Project over $10 million’ for Council’s $120 million Utilities Accelerated Capital Works Program

Highly Commended in ‘Design of a Local Government Public Works Project in Road Safety’ for the Western Downs Road Safety Alliance’s debut campaign ‘Slow Down — Our Kids, Our Community’

Spokesperson for Utilities — Water, Wastewater, and Gas Councillor George Moore said the recognition for excellence in water and wastewater management and project innovation is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and skills of Council staff.

“This is an exceptional achievement for our staff and all those involved in the planning, construction, and delivery of Council’s Utilities Accelerated Capital Works Program,” he said.

“An award like this confirms that Council is striving to deliver sustainable service and water and wastewater infrastructure that is of a high quality and meets the needs of our communities and our future.”

Spokesperson for Works and Engineering Services and Chairperson of the Western Downs Road Safety Alliance Councillor Andrew Smith said the success of the ‘Slow Down — Our Kids, Our Community’ campaign wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the community.

“Council, along with Alliance members the Queensland Police Service and Department of Transport and Main Roads, are committed to improving road safety in the Western Downs, and it is encouraging that industry experts and our community have recognised the significance of and supported our debut campaign,” he said.

“This project is a great example of how multiple agencies can work together to help make our roads safer and I would like to congratulate the project team for their outstanding accomplishments.”